Wednesday, October 03, 2007

This entry is about my weekend trip to Riga, partly to celebrate my 1st month overseas( yah, right)



This is the hostel that i stayed in for my 2 nights in Riga. It costs 8 lats, which is 24 sgd a night. Whether it is expensive or not, not sure, but it is in the heart of the Old Town and just opposite the bus station where the bus terminated. I guess it is wise to find somewhere near as i reached Riga at 1030pm. Not sure if it is safe to be on the streets



The street near my hostel. Notice its cobblered road. A usual thing in the old towns in Europe




The Freedom Statute. It is really very tall and it is sure a tourist spot as many tourists are seen snapping their cameras. So i did the same thing. Quite cool, huh the statute.



Just took the picture of the building because i like it so much. The fact that it is bright yellow in colour. Notice that there is a stone cat on pointed end of the building. Unique



Another nice and unique building in the Center of the Dome



A meseum i think, not very sure.

At noon the next day, i went back to the hostel where they had this guided tour of Riga where they took the participants to parts of Riga usually seen by tourists. Paid 5 lats for that.

This is what i had in return



This building is called Stalin's Birthday Cake. The shape says it all and it is now a government building. This is beauty and sadness of the Baltic States. Charming and sad because of their Soviet past



One of the stop over where we had coffee. This place is grand one lor. But coffee is cheap. 0.8 lats ( 2.4 sgd)



This building is unique because of the flowery patterns and came from one designer from the early 1900s. Not sure of his name.



Not forgetting that Riga is a city by the sea. Its harbour



Skyscrapers have made their way to Riga as well



The guided tour ended at the harbour but i went back to the Old Town for more self-exploration



My favourite place in Riga Old Town. I totally adore the building on the right. It is called the House of the Black Heads



This maybe a reason why. Didn't managed to go in because it was closed at 5pm




I love it so much that i snapped so many picture of it





A spanky new shopping mall in Riga shows how wealthy Latvia has become today



A wet and cold Sunday morning where people are seen manning their stalls



A lady selling flowers on a rainy morning



Interesting bistro name. Yes, TGIF!!



A scene near the bus and train station. It is a pity that Riga has yet to fully exploit its water ways. Could be beautiful where boats could sail by the river. But now, the whole area seems and is seedy and chaotic

So, that's the highlights of my Riga trip. It was my first holiday travelling alone. Overall, it is good, because Riga, in the Old Town is safe. And Riga totally is different from what i expected. It has progressed so much economically and because they are also occupied by the Germans, just reminds me of a German city. I hope it shatters the perception of people. I would really recommend Singaporeans to visit Latvia or Riga if you want somewhere modern/rich but at the same time cheaper than other Western European cities

But it has become somewhat tourisy, highly due to the fact that budget airlines fly from London to Riga. So it is a trade off isn't it?